Public Meeting to Consider the Review of ARB's Community Health Programs and the Impacts of California Phase
3 Reformulated Gasoline

SUMMARY OF AGENDA ITEM:

Staff gave a presentation on the ARB's Community Health Program. This included information on the health effects
of air pollution, the assessment of public health risks in California's communities, the development of strategies
for reducing public health risk, and the development of ARB environmental justice guidelines.

Staff also presented the expected impacts of the Phase 3 Reformulated Gasoline regulations on air quality. Phase
3 gasoline will be similar to Phase 2 gasoline, except MTBE will be phased out by the end of 2002 and replaced
by ethanol as an oxygenate. The California Environmental Policy Council determined that there will be no adverse
environmental impacts associated with this change.

At the meeting, public comments were made. Board Members asked a number of questions during the public testimony
and asked ARB staff to follow up on several issues.

Jean Siri testified that she was concerned about the high rate of children's asthma in west Contra Costa County.

Denny Larson of Communities for a Better Environment (CBE) gave a presentation on the environmental impacts at
refineries after conversion to Phase 2 gasoline. He said that there have been more accidents and upsets at the
refineries since the conversion, and he was concerned that Phase 3 gasoline might exacerbate those problems. He
also stressed the need for better complaint response from local agencies and for fence-line monitoring around refineries.

Karen Susag of CBE reiterated Mr. Larson's points and added that the Board should visit Richmond on a regular basis.

Ethel Dotson of CBE said that community residents should be tested for adverse health impacts caused by air pollution,
and they should either be relocated or otherwise compensated for those health impacts.

Tina Constantino, the Youth Coordinator of CBE, introduced several young people from the Bayo Vista housing project.
Wendy Banegas talked about the "bucket brigade" sampling program and showed a prototype sampler. Lucia
Flores discussed the fence-line monitoring of 300 toxic chemicals currently being conducted by Tosco Refinery,
the accessibility of that data on the Internet, and the need for more fence-line monitoring near other refineries.

Henry Clark, West County Toxics Coalition, said that his organization has been advocating environmental justice
since 1980, and that elected officials should be leading the environmental justice movement, not following. He
said that Reformulated Gasoline 2 (RFG 2) negatively impacted nearby communities because of increased refinery
emissions, and he was skeptical that RFG 3 would not have a similar environmental justice impact.

Karleen Lloyd of People United for a Better Oakland (PUEBLO) questioned why Crockett was chosen over Richmond as
a Children's Health Monitoring Program site.

At the conclusion of the public testimony, Supervisor DeSaulnier committed to meeting with concerned citizens,
the Bay Area Air Quality Management District staff and ARB staff within the next 90 days regarding the concerns
expressed at the community meeting.

Michael Kenny said that ARB staff will investigate additional fence-line monitoring for refineries and will pursue
a suggested control measure addressing more consistent and effective penalties assessed by air districts on non-compliant
facilities.